I’m surprised that you didn’t mention Tankard Reist’s religious affiliations. She’s a fundamentalist Christian. As feminists we learn to always ask anyone who is publicly morally prescriptive where they are coming from. Yet you don’t ask that question.

Tankard Reist’s critique of sexuality is based on the moral values of fundamentalist Christianity. She is of the religious right and a member of a church that preaches the second coming of Christ, the end time, and evangelism.

If we can tell Tony Abbott to get his rosaries off our ovaries because of his Catholic beliefs, why aren’t we telling Tankard Reist the same thing? And why are journalists such as yourself concealing her religious affiliations?

Like other commentators, Hills focuses on Tankard Reist’s pro life feminism. There’s been a lot of twitter chatter over the last few days about who is and isn’t a feminist, and there’s plenty of women who don’t believe that anyone who is anti abortion can also be a feminist.

That’s not the argument I’m going to have here, because for me what is far more important than whether or not Tankard Reist is a feminist (whatever that word means, very little I sometimes fear) are her religious beliefs, and the way in which they determine her beliefs about human sexuality.

Tankard Reist is a Baptist. Their belief system includes the second coming of Christ, end times, evangelism, and the belief most relevant to this post and a central tenet of the Baptist faith: the Virgin Birth.

Tankard Reist believes that the woman chosen to bring the boy god Jesus into the world was a virgin. Mary did not conceive the baby Jesus through sexual intercourse. The boy god required a fresh, unsullied virgin to inhabit throughout his gestation.

Why? Because the followers of the doctrine of the virgin birth believe that sex filthies the human female, and renders her impure. The inherent impurity of female sexuality can be tempered by the sacrament of Christian marriage, wherein sex is a means of reproduction, and offers relief for the male. It is better to marry than to burn, advised St Paul, demonstrating how little he thought of female sexuality.

The boy god needed a pure vessel, unfilthied by sexual experience. In this sense Mary was the most famous objectified woman in the history of the world, for to dehumanize a woman to the extent that you perceive her sexuality as filthy is objectifying indeed.

The Virgin Mary was in fact co-opted as a dehumanized life support system for a foetus.

It is from this fundamental position that Melinda Tankard Reist advises women and girls on sexual matters.

While I don’t like seeing little girls dressed as sexy adults anymore than MTR, what concerns me is that in campaigning as she does against the “sexualisation” and “pornification” of women she’s preaching her religion’s belief that there is something inherently wrong with female sexual expression.

I am also suspicious of her conflation of girls and women, when the two situations are entirely different and should be treated as such. Exploiting the sexuality of children (and children are sexual beings) is a whole other matter from the so-called epidemic of “sexualisation” and “pornification” of adults. I would like to see a journalist question Tankard Reist on her persistent conflation of the two. I believe it is deliberate.

We are sexual beings. Many of us, male and female, like to express our sexuality. It’s a big part of our identity. The ways in which we’ve chosen to do this have varied according to the style of the time. The ways some of us choose to do it in 2012 are, I would argue, no more or less scandalous than at other periods of human history. Yet a new sexual dysfunction called “sexualization” has entered the social discourse, driven initially in this country by Tankard Reist. She then gathered around her a motley crew of radical feminists and middle class moralists who tacitly ignore their considerable differences in the interests of the greater goal of fighting the twin evils they claim are destroying our society: sexualization and pornification.

I am unaware how many of her supporters are religious, but I would argue that they have in common an inclination towards zealotry, and an ethic of purity, both of which are to be found in non believers.

Are Tankard Reist and her supporters in reality pathologizing all expressions of female sexuality? Genuine sexualization we may well get upset about, as a particular form of dehumanization, but are they using that word to obliterate the perfectly normal concept of female sexiness?

Does Tankard Reist believe that being sexy and feeling sexy is pathological behaviour outside of the marital bedchamber? And why does nobody ask her this question?

“Sexualization” and “pornification” are done to women, according to Reist. Women don’t choose to dress, work and play in ways that fit these pathological categories. They’ve been forced into them by men for male gratification. If you think you choose to wear high heels and a short skirt and learn pole dancing, you’re wrong. The patriarchy made you do it. If you think you like to show off your legs and breasts because it feels like sexy fun to do that, you didn’t make that choice, you know. You are actually so brainwashed that the whole concept of choice passed you by long ago. You are a victim.

If you want to look sexy because you’d like to have sex, if you earn your living as a sex worker or perform in porn, in short, if you express your sexuality in any way at all outside of marriage, you are dysfunctional, immoral or both.

Somebody needs to ask Tankard Reist just what she considers an acceptable public expression of female sexuality. I suspect the reality is, she doesn’t have one. For religious fundamentalists, there is no such thing. A woman must be modest and pure, but definitely not sexy and enjoying it.

What kind of a lesson is this to teach our girls about their sexuality?

Having thus far failed to take control of the sexy and eradicate it’s expression through the invocation of morality, defining it as a pathological disorder is the next step in the reactionary battle for control of female sexuality.

Tankard Reist is very accomplished in deflecting questions about her religious faith. In an interview with Jane Hutcheon for ABC TV’s One on One, Reist coyly states that she “tries to follow the teachings of Jesus” and then insists that her work must stand on its merits and her belief system is irrelevant.

But if your religion teaches you that women must be “pure”, that sex must be heterosexual and occur only within the sanctity of marriage, and that its primary purpose is reproduction, how can this not affect your perceptions of sexuality as expressed in the world around you?

When you choose to make your life’s work campaigning against the ways in which women sexually represent ourselves, do you have the right to withhold your beliefs about female sexuality from the public you seek to influence?

There’s no doubt women are objectified in some media and by some men, and this can be detrimental to everyone. However, it seems to me that the last person we want making judgments about how to best address these issues is a fundamentalist Christian, anymore than we want Tony Abbott in control of our abortion choices.We need to think very carefully about where this religious-based approach to sexual issues is going to take us.

I don’t care if Melinda Tankard Reist is defined as a feminist or not. She is anti abortion. She is deceptive and duplicitous about her religious beliefs and she does not declare herself. When asked why not, she counters that people would not hear her message if her religious beliefs became a distracting focus. She does not believe in any public expression of female sexuality, in other words she is repressive and dehumanizes women.

Just got home to find a letter from the lawyers of Melinda Tankard Reist demanding I withdraw all my posts about her or very bad things will ensue.

This is pretty amusing when you read some of the things MTR writes about those she does not approve of.

She’s going to have to sue a few more blogs than just mine, because I’m not the only one who’s written that she’s a Baptist, and attends Belconnen Baptist Church. It’s well in the public domain.

And how bizarre it is that someone who is a devout Christian is so cagey about her faith and her practice? Why not be open about her religious faith? Christians usually are. What does she have to hide?

At least I know now why Rachel Hills didn’t ask those questions, or if she asked the questions, didn’t publish any answers!

If you want to see just how cagey MTR is about this watch this interview with ABC TV’s Jane Hutcheon when Hutcheon asks about her religion and how it affects her work. She tries to follow Jesus, she says, but she doesn’t want anybody focusing on her religion because that will distract from her work.

Well, we might all be about to find out just exactly what MTR’s religious faith is, because she’s going to have to come clean if she wants to sue me.

Friday, December 9, 2011

"We are asking everyone to contact the American Atheist affiliate in his area [click here], letting them know of your interest in “adopting” one of them. All it takes is an e-mail. Let them know of your sincere interest in working with them to uncover their inner self. They may be resistant at first, but eventually they may come to understand that they were Christian all along."

This should be a good opportunity to pull some people out of Catholicism.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Biologist and author Richard Dawkins presents a thought experiment to explain human origins. Following each generation backwards across millions of years of evolution, Dawkins shows why no species -- including homo sapiens -- can truly be said to have a "first" ancestor.

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What Is Reality? Richard Dawkins talks with Henry Finder. Presented in collaboration with the New Yorker Festival, on October 1, 2011.

Richard Dawkins is an evolutionary biologist and the author of the Times best-selling books The Selfish Gene, The God Delusion, and The Greatest Show on Earth. His new book, The Magic of Reality, an illustrated science guide for adults and young people, comes out in October. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society and of the Royal Society of Literature.

'I believe in the separation of church and state. We all have our own religious beliefs. There are people out there who are atheists, who don't believe at all. They are all citizens of Minnesota and I have to respect that.'

Jesse Ventura, American politician, the 38th Governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2003, on refusing to sign a National Day of Prayer in 1999

Sunday, July 10, 2011

YouTube - ‪South Park Proved Right About Scientology XENU Story‬‏: "Tommy Davis, a spokesperson for the Church of Scientology, categorically denied any knowledge of Xenu and the Alien genocide that is a pillar of their faith. In this video, (LRH) L Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology, describes the story in detail and proves Tommy Davis is a liar and South Park (SP) was right!"

Thursday, June 30, 2011

Sunday, May 22, 2011

You've committed your life to Jesus. You know you're saved. But when the Rapture comes what's to become of your loving pets who are left behind? Eternal Earth-Bound Pets takes that burden off your mind.

We are a group of dedicated animal lovers, and atheists. Each Eternal Earth-Bound Pet representative is a confirmed atheist, and as such will still be here on Earth after you've received your reward. Our network of animal activists are committed to step in when you step up to Jesus.

You've committed your life to Jesus. You know you're saved. But when the Rapture comes what's to become of your loving pets who are left behind? Eternal Earth-Bound Pets takes that burden off your mind.

We are a group of dedicated animal lovers, and atheists. Each Eternal Earth-Bound Pet representative is a confirmed atheist, and as such will still be here on Earth after you've received your reward. Our network of animal activists are committed to step in when you step up to Jesus.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Pastor Bites Head Off Baby Rabbit After Rousing Sermon!: "Pastor Deacon Fred Teaches Church Members a Valuable Lesson About the Sanctity of Easter by Biting the Head off of a Bunny Rabbit Freehold, Iowa - The Dillard Henderson family were in the middle of a lovely Stouffer's Sunday dinner last week when a sin posse of twenty church Deacons burst into their kitchen armed with shotguns and several dozen gallons of gasoline. There was a great commotion as the Deacons demanded to know where 12-year-old Stewart Henderson was hiding his bunny rabbit, 'Mr.Cottonelle Tail.' "

Saturday, March 12, 2011

Now, this could be fake, only time will tell. If it is, we risk giving asylum to resourceful young people. The risk of rejecting them is that we trap two young people in a hopeless, miserable situation for life. I'll take the former risk.

We are two sisters on the run, to save ourselves, from the very people , that in the conventional society would be referred to as ''Family''. We were born in an ultra-conservative Muslim family in United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi. My younger sister was born in the year 1994, and I in 1988. Our family is originally from Pakistan; hence, that makes us Pakistanis.

I was a victim of severe childhood abuse till the age of 13, my parents being the abusers. My mother was an extremist and always wanted control of our lives and if things weren’t done her way, if we didn’t oblige, we’d suffer the consequences through beatings. Just to quote a few of her beating rituals; she’d dunk my little brother and my face in the toilet, threatening to kill us at that very instant if we didn’t promise to abide by her rules. At another instance , she grabbed my tongue and held a knife in her hand, and told me that she’d cut if off and peel off my face to the extent that no one would be able to recognize me , if I were to ever have a bite of food again. We are three siblings, and we all got our beatings for different reasons. I was beaten, just because I was overweight as a kid and that to them was not acceptable because according to them, it meant, that I’d have a hard time finding a suitable partner, which by the Islamic law they would find for me. My sister on the other hand was beaten for having a sharp tongue, even though she was the youngest, nevertheless she was aware of what was going on. My brother would be beaten up because he aspired to be a soccer player instead of becoming an Engineer or a Doctor or any profession that was respectable in their eyes. Us sisters would never get beaten by our father, instead he would stick to verbal abuse, in public , as well as at times like family dinners. My mother had three brothers and three sisters. One of the brothers and one of her sisters had molested, three of my first cousin’s, and I became aware of this when I was 14, as my cousins had warned me to stay cautious for myself and my sister.

Both of us never got molested from the family, but we got molested by people outside the family. I never discussed my case with our parents, and these were the last people I could rely on. My sister’s case on the other hand, was reported to the police and I believe the case is still on-going.

Now I want to jot down the most current events that came into play, leaving me no choice but to flee the country. After being a victim of severe childhood abuse at home, sexual harassment in public and at my university back in Pakistan, at the age of18 I got my chance to go to Royal Holloway University of London, England, to graduate. By the year 2010, I had completed 2 years of my Computer Science course. Spending time away from my parents helped me discover myself and things I truly believed in. I was no longer a Muslim, rather an Agnostic. My little sister on the other hand, started questioning the idea of God at the very tender age of 12 and gave up religion and stopped believing in God at the age of 13. This was something we kept discreet, as if our family was to find out about any of it, they would have locked us up. Moreover by this time, how our parents treated and dealt with both of us, and our brother had completely changed. They now support him with his dream of being a cricketer , whereas, our dreams are futile and meaningless to them , as at the end of the day all they care about is for us two to be wedded to wealthy families.

After having completed 2 years at the University, I had decided to take a gap year, before graduating, in order to pursue my dream of becoming a performer (singer, songwriter) instead. I had planned on using the tuition fee for the third year, provided by our parents, and strictly saw it as a loan that I would return overtime, to enroll myself in a music college. Our family is one of wealth and I couldn’t come forth with this desire of mine as in our family’s eyes it was sin and something that would completely devastate the family’s honor. Also over the time spent in England, I had met a Polish man, Lukasz Sitkowski , and we had planned to elope soon, though when I mentioned it to my mother, she didn’t find it acceptable as he was an Atheist and wanted him and his family to convert to Islam first , if I was to marry him. I was no longer a virgin and this was something again my family was and still is unaware of. If they were to find out that I no longer was a virgin, I’d be stoned to death. My sister and I would always communicate with one another through e-mail, and Skype. Our mother hired a computer guy to find out what it was that we discussed most of the time. Through him, she found out about my future plans, along with the fact that I was an agnostic, and my sister an Atheist. She never uttered a word of it to anyone.

During the summer of 2010, I didn’t want to come back, thus I didn’t. I worked as a waitress at Nandos instead. I didn’t tell our parents about my job as a waitress at Nandos, because to them, again, it was something that was condescending and scorned upon by the family. Therefore, I told our parents that I was doing an internship in the I.T department. My mother convinced me to visit for 2 weeks, using our fathers’ made-up illness as a mere excuse to visit. I expressed to my sister that my instincts lead me to believe that something unfortunate awaited me in Pakistan. Regardless, I silenced the voices in my head, and chose to visit, because I wanted to see her.

During this period of time, our brother, who too was studying in London, had come to visit our parents, as well. My sister arrived in Pakistan on the 4th of September,2010. After a week, she realized that her passport was missing. Our mother made us believe that it was stolen at the airport, or that my sister was a victim of black magic, and that ‘’Jins’’ (spiritual beings known to Muslims) had misplaced it. After two weeks, since the disappearance of the passport, my sister, was convinced that our mother had the passport, and had us almost believe a lie. Our mother had gone to the extent of advertising for the lost passport in the newspapers. As to my sisters’ suspicion, we found the lost passport, in her storage space. She called my brother right away, and let him know that our mother had stolen it. He believed us right away. We had had thought that our father wasn’t involved in the whole situation, thus, we planned on telling him that we had found the passport. When they returned from the airport, we told him. He ended up strangling me, because I wouldn’t give up my passport. They managed to take away the passport anyhow. I had suffered several minor bruises. My mother told us that “Allah” had lead her to all of this and not her nosiness. My father told me sister dishonored the family by merely being a waitress at Nandos. Our mother on the other hand told us that she desired to kill both of us; me for wanting to become a performer and being an Agnostic, as that was seen as a sin and something ‘’haram’’ (Impermissible) in Islam, and my little sister, for being an Atheist. She said it would be the right thing to do to save us from the fire of hell, and also to help us avoid the committing these so-called sins in her eyes.

For two straight months, we were on a curfew. They had 6 servants working for them, and they were all strictly instructed that none of us was to be allowed to leave the house. During these two months, we didn’t leave our room. After two months, one of our first cousins’ named ‘’Osama’’ came for a visit. After a short period of time, in his presence, they allowed us to go out, and we availed this opportunity to the maximum. I applied for a new passport, and received it. Over the next month, we kept planning our escape, including our source of funds, all the documents we needed such as our birth certificates, passports etc. Over time, we found exactly where each document was placed in her room. My sisters’ boyfriend tried getting a loan for us, but it didn’t work out. Being desperate, as nothing seemed to fall into place, we planned to steal her gold jewelry. We discussed the fact that if countries for their freedom kill and plunder, because our means justified our end; that being freedom of speech, expression, and thought. We managed to sell the jewelry and receive enough money to escape. We knew we wouldn’t have enough time to apply for the visa once we were out of the house, because they would track us down. My mothers’ brother knew a lot of politicians, and the head of the police department. They had bribed them before, and had asked them for many favors previously, and the police would do so, again without question.

We decided to go to Sri Lanka on a one month tourist visa that would be given to us on arrival. We escaped on the 28th of January, and now reside in Sri Lanka. As we suspected, our mothers’ brother contacted the head of the police department, and the head of the ministry of interior, and, convinced them to put us on the Exit Control List (ECL). This meant that we wouldn’t be allowed to leave Pakistan, if we even tried. Fortunately, it was issued the day of our escape, so it was too late. They have sent us a threat to contact them, and told us that if we do, they will help take our names off the ECL list. We still have the mail as proof. Our visa for Sri Lanka expires within less than a month.

Once I received the mail, I had no option but to contact UNHCR and seek for asylum, as I though that being on the ECL wouldn’t allow me to get approved for any sort of visa for, any foreign country. Our case at the moment with UNHCR is pending, though due to undue pressure from the Pakistani government, brought on, because of my uncle being influential with the Pakistani government; our application was made a priority. The UNHCR usually takes about 5 to 6 months to call in for an interview, and we were called within a month. I don’t know whether that is in our favor or not, as I am aware that there exist a comradery between Sri Lanka and Pakistan, hence I fear, that I application might get rejected. Now the current situation is that, my uncle and my mother, arrived in Colombo, looking for us on the 4th February. The contacted the tourist police, and made up the story that me and my sister came to Sri lanka for touring purposes and are now missing. The police managed to track us down, but after having shown them the asylum seeker certificate issued to us by the UNHCR, they backed off. During this period, we were forced to confront our mother at the police station, and she denied to have done anything and threatened me that I would never be able to leave Sri lanka and that she would stay here until I am here. My younger sister is 16, a minor, and my parents are her legal guardians. My mother now wants to take my sister back and use her as a bargaining chip to get me back to Pakistan as well, as that is the only card she has left to play. She will torture her, and her knowing how much I love my sister, would come back to save her and so they will have both of us back in Pakistan. At present there is a court case going on where me and my mother are fighting for my sister custody. The next date is on the 14th of march. My sister and I , just want a chance at life , at freedom, and the opportunity to be able to make something of our lives. We need advise on what should we do and if there is a possibility , that me and my sister can somehow settle in the UK , without declaring asylum either in Sri lanka or in the UK. We are capable enough to make something out of our lives , if given a chance. We are fighting hard for our freedom and we really need help. We have limited funds, but enough to spend a few months in the UK, until we manage to get jobs. But the real problem is how do we get to the UK?.

Please for all who would be reading this, we need a helping hand, advice , anything that can help us. Any response from any one of you would be appreciated.We need to be heard by all governments, and we need help with spreading out the word. I’m trying to get hold of news channels like CNN and BBC, but it might take time.

"As a democratic revolution led by tech-empowered young people sweeps the Arab world, Wadah Khanfar, the head of Al Jazeera, shares a profoundly optimistic view of what's happening in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya and beyond -- at this powerful moment when people realized they could step out of their houses and ask for change."

About the speaker:

Wadah Khanfar:

From war correspondent to Baghdad bureau chief to Director General at its global helm, Wadah Khanfar has worked through the closure and bombing of Al Jazeera's bureaus, the torture and murder of its journalists and state propaganda smears.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

"For those of you who don't know, this is God's second novel after the Old Testament. It's a marked improvement, in my opinion. He got rid of a lot of his previous angst and scorn, and has really begun to show some of the maturity present in his later works. He's become a much more loving and kind God, and, noticeably, he doesn't throw nearly as many tantrums as he did in the first book. "

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